Nostalgic players wanting to revisit retro classics from an entirely new persepective are in luck, as an emulation program is turning NES games into VR experiences. It's something that simply has to be seen to be properly grasped, and the final product is nothing short of amazing.
The Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) was launched by Nintendo a lifetime ago in 1983, originally known as the Famicom in Japan. The 8-bit console almost single-handedly dragged the tanking video game market out of its dire slump and made Nintendo a household name through the present. Now, VR re-imaginings of its legendary library, which included the original Super Mario Bros., The Legend of Zelda, and so many others, will be pulling gamers out of their present quarantine boredom. Industry-wide adoption of VR is slow-moving, so returning to revamped hits of yesteryear is a great method of passing the time for that purpose, as well.
The 3DSen VR Nintendo Emulator, is a "Virtual Reality 3D Voxel Emulator," and its a technical marvel of a fan-made project. It takes the simple 8-bit visuals of iconic NES titles, translates them into voxels, and projects them in a 3D VR space to spectacular effect. In Derivitiv Films' below video, viewers can see how drastically the program changes the way that games so otherwise familiar look and play. Currently supporting 53 titles with "more being added all the time," 3DSen allows players to pan about and switch viewing angles at will in platformers like Super Mario Bros. 3 and Castlevania, and it gives the likes of Contra and The Legend of Zelda a real sense of player presence. Meanwhile, Duck Hunt and other NES Zapper titles almost seem made for VR due to their first-person view, and 3DSen fully eliminates the need to own a compatible light gun.
Not only are the transformative effects of the 3DSen program something that must be seen to believed, but they also need to be experienced from within a VR headset to be fully understood. This writer cannot report that they've had the chance for the latter, though there are some likely caveats and strengths to the process that are common throughout VR, and they may not seem obvious from the video alone. While Zapper games stand to benefit most from VR emulation, one can't help but imagine that normal gamepad-controlled games might slightly suffer. Much like modding VR out of a purpose-built title would probably ruin the gameplay experience, adding VR to a twitchy shoot 'em up like Contra could result in even more frequent deaths than normal.
There's no denying, though, that a bit of motion sickness or frustration is more than worth it if it means one can relive the glory days of the NES in painstaking VR recreations. In addition to being downright cool to watch and play, 3DSen is yet another among many novel applications of virtual reality that continue to drive the technology forward.
Source: Derivitiv Films via YouTube